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The Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) has been disbanded ahead of the 2014 Formula 1 season. FOTA was set up six years ago in order to provide the teams with a voice in their discussions with the FIA and the Formula One group. During heightened political tensions in 2009, FOTA proposed a breakaway series before a deal was ultimately reached for the teams to remain in Formula 1. However, FOTA was struck a blow when Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Ferrari and Sauber withdrew a couple […]

Force India co-owner Vijay Mallya has dismissed speculation that new signing Sergio Perez is a pay driver. Perez will race for the Silverstone based team into 2014 after being axed by McLaren after a solitary season, but Mallya has rejected suggestions that he signed the Mexican due to his backing. "Mexico, Latin America - that part of the world was totally closed for us: we don’t do business in that part of the world, we had no connection to that part of the world. It’s […]

Senior figures inside Formula 1 have hit out at the spiralling costs of Formula 1, ahead of this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix. Caterham owner Tony Fernandes says that self-interest means Formula 1 teams have missed an opportunity to cut costs in the sport. Fernandes entered the sport in 2010 on the promise of a budget cap, which was ultimately abandoned. "I’ve been consistent since day one I’ve been in Formula One that costs are too high and every… when I came into Formula One, people […]

The furore over Mercedes' secret Pirelli test looks set to deepen, as rival teams claim they were not informed by F1's tyre supplier. As it refused to rule out "penalties", the FIA said Pirelli and Mercedes would have got the green light for the test "provided every team" was also offered the same opportunity. It has emerged Ferrari did a secret test for Pirelli before Barcelona with a 2011 car, with Pedro de la Rosa at the wheel. And Red Bull confirmed it was asked […]

Marussia is on the market for a new engine supplier, sporting director Graeme Lowdon has admitted. Although Cosworth has not ruled out supplying a turbo V6 for the all-new 2014 regulations, Marussia is now the British company's only customer for the existing V8. And most paddock experts expect only Mercedes, Renault and Ferrari to supply V6s next year. "My understanding is that Cosworth won't be making a 2014 engine," Lowdon explained at the FOTA Fans' Forum in Barcelona. "I don't work for Cosworth, but that […]

The Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) has revealed that Carbon emissions across the paddock were cut by 7% between 2009 and 2011. FOTA revealed that data from 8 teams was analysed by environmental research analysis organisation Trucost. They found that fuel efficiency led to a 24% cut in carbon emissions from Formula One cars. There has also been a 14% fall in emissions from electricity use. Growth also took place, as the increasingly expanding calendar since 2009 means that emissions from business travel and freight rose by 38% […]

Martin Whitmarsh has revealed he is not surprised to hear about 2014 engine supplier Pure's problems. The McLaren boss and current FOTA chairman said he expects there to be just three engine manufacturers - Mercedes, Renault and Ferrari - supplying turbo V6 engines in 2014. There had already been doubts in the paddock that HRT and Marussia's V8 supplier, the British independent Cosworth, may not be in a position to supply engines in 2014 as per the radical new regulations. And it emerged recently that […]

Martin Whitmarsh has flagged his intention to step down as president of the teams association FOTA. The union was created in the heat of the Max Mosley political war in 2008, with McLaren team boss Whitmarsh then taking over from FOTA's first chairman, Luca di Montezemolo, at the end of 2009. Since then, the group has fractured, with Ferrari, Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Sauber and HRT all no longer listed as members on the official FOTA website. And in a report by Dieter Rencken and […]

Martin Whitmarsh has urged Mercedes to finally sign the new Concorde Agreement. Despite Bernie Ecclestone's earlier intimations to the contrary, it emerged at Hockenheim that Mercedes is in fact still yet to agree to the terms of the new deal. It is believed a major sticking point is that top rivals McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull have all been offered places on F1's post-floatation board, but not Mercedes. Indeed, in an interview with McLaren boss Whitmarsh posted on F1's official website, the transcript quotes the […]

With a single neat soundbite, Michael Schumacher on Wednesday renewed his criticism of Pirelli and called for a new tyre war in F1. The German publication Auto Bild this week mentioned the rumour that FIA president and Frenchman Jean Todt would like to see Michelin return to the sport. But the French tyre marque has stated categorically that it would only come back if the rules are changed to allow tyre makers to compete against one another again. During the FOTA fan's forum in Stuttgart […]

Whether or not Michael Schumacher stays at Mercedes beyond this year should be decided within the next six weeks, team boss Ross Brawn has revealed. The 43-year-old's contract runs out this year, in which he has so far performed more strongly than in 2010 and 2011 but suffered a spate of technical failures and incidents. It has been suggested Mercedes protege Paul di Resta, currently at Mercedes-powered Force India, is the most likely candidate to replace the seven time world champion. "We will make a […]

It is possible Formula One teams will be limited to a budget cap in 2013, according to Germany's Auto Motor und Sport. The budget cap idea saw the sport almost implode amid the bitter political war of 2009, when proposed by controversial former FIA president Max Mosley. But it is back on the agenda in 2012, and according to new rules - where a majority of teams can now push through a change - it could be imposed next season. "Ten of the 12 teams […]